Engine knocks are not fun to hear. They sound awful and they’re a definite performance issue. Engine knocks that don’t get resolved can lead to damage down the line. MotivWerks has some information for you to help you to understand what might be causing the knocking you’re hearing in your car’s engine.
Dirty Air Filter
Air is a huge part of keeping your car’s engine working properly. When the air filter is dirty or clogged, that affects how much air is able to come through the air intake and make it to the engine. One of the things that you should check periodically in between services is whether your car’s air filter is dirty or not. When it gets too bad, it needs replacing.
Engine Timing Is Off
Engine timing is all about getting your car the spark it has to have in order to run. Timing that spark properly means that air and fuel are in the right place and in the right amounts when the spark hits. If that’s not happening the way that it should, you’re going to hear engine knocks and pings.
Knock Sensors Failed
Your engine has some sensors all over the place that help the engine control module to make adjustments here and there when something is off. When knock sensors in the engine hear the same knocks that you wonder about, the ECM is able to make adjustments based on the type of knock and other data. But if the sensors aren’t working, no information is getting to the ECM and it may not even know that there’s knocking happening.
You’re Buying the Wrong Gas
Your owner’s manual tells you the octane levels of the fuel you should put in your car’s tank. If you ignore that advice and buy a lower octane level instead, you’re very likely to hear a lot of engine knocks. This one is an easy fix usually, because all you have to do is buy the correct gas the next time you fill up. If you’ve made it a habit to buy the wrong gas, though, the knocks can become permanent.
Engine knocks aren’t something normal that you should just overlook when you hear them. They’re a sign of trouble and MotivWerks in Chambersburg, PA can help you to do just that. Call us when you start to hear engine knocking and we’ll help you to figure out what is causing the problem so you can put a fix in place.